Twelve Weeks, 200 Employees, and a Marketing Promise

Session (30 minutes, 25–30 participants, chairs or mats):

1. 4 min - joint mobility and neck/shoulder release (neck turns, shoulder rolls, wrist and ankle circles). Justification: 120 of 200 report neck or back discomfort, and nine hours of sitting produces stiff thoracic spines and tight hip flexors; mobility first also lets the instructor scan for people who should not proceed.
2. 10 min - asana, standing and chair-supported: tadasana, side bend, cat–cow, gentle twist, setu bandhasana, a low lunge, ending with a supported forward fold. Emphasis on thoracic extension and hip opening, and on how to sit - the transfer to their desk matters more than the shape.
3. 6 min - pranayama: abdominal breathing 4:6, then anulom-vilom without retention. No breath holds: some participants have uncontrolled BP, and retention is contraindicated with proliferative retinopathy, which is not excluded by the baseline survey.
4. 6 min - guided relaxation in savasana or chair. Justification: the stress score is the second-largest cluster after musculoskeletal.
5. 4 min - one short education point each week (desk set-up, standing break every 45 minutes, plate proportions, sleep timing, foot care). This is what turns a class into prevention.

Home component: a 10-minute daily routine (mobility plus 4:6 breathing) and a step target built from their current baseline, not a blanket 10,000.

Safety for the diabetic subgroup: screen before entry, ask about retinopathy and neuropathy, avoid long holds and inversions for those with proliferative retinopathy, keep 15 g fast carbohydrate in the room, avoid the class immediately after an insulin dose at peak action, ensure footwear, and check glucose before class for anyone on insulin. The instructor's first-aid certificate and an incident book are non-negotiable with no clinical backup on site.

Measure what 12 weeks can actually move, and measure it the same way twice.

• Musculoskeletal: numerical pain rating (0–10) for neck and low back, and a simple function item such as the 30-second chair stand. These respond in weeks, which is why they should be primary.
• Stress and wellbeing: the 10-item Perceived Stress Scale, plus sleep hours.
• Fitness: sit-and-reach and resting heart rate. Avoid a maximal test with no medical cover.
• Attendance and drop-out, reported honestly.
• Diabetes: fasting glucose and, if the company insists, HbA1c - but state the caveat. HbA1c reflects roughly three months, so a 12-week window samples the period before the programme as much as during it. Medication changes, diet, and seasonal illness will confound it. Two 30-minute sessions a week is below the frequency at which yoga trials show glycaemic effects; the programme is a movement break and skills course, not a diabetes intervention.

Permitted claim: "Participants reported less neck and low-back discomfort; a majority attended regularly; the programme was acceptable and safe."

Claims not permitted: "brings down blood sugar", "beats diabetes", "cures", "reduces HbA1c". There is no control group, self-selection is heavy, and the numbers cannot support causal language.

Design caveat to put in the report: a single-group pre/post evaluation cannot separate the programme from regression to the mean (people enrol when they feel worst) or from the attention effect. If the board wants proof, the honest next step is a waiting-list comparison group.

Screening (before session one, in writing, with consent):

• A standard readiness questionnaire (PAR-Q+ type) plus specific items: known heart disease, uncontrolled hypertension, stroke, epilepsy, glaucoma or retinal disease, recent surgery, pregnancy, hernia, uncontrolled asthma, current musculoskeletal injury, and diabetes with retinopathy, neuropathy or a recent hypoglycaemic episode.
• For the 22 diabetic employees: current medication and whether they are on insulin or a sulfonylurea (hypoglycaemia risk), latest HbA1c and BP if they know them, and whether they have been told they have eye or foot complications.
• Measurements at entry: resting BP and heart rate for everyone; a random glucose for anyone on insulin or a sulfonylurea before their first session.

Referral thresholds: BP at or above 160/100, glucose below 70 mg/dL or above 250 mg/dL with symptoms, chest pain, or unexplained breathlessness - no class that day; advise medical review. Do not "work around" these.

Incident protocol: an incident register; a named first-aider present at every session; a charged phone and the local emergency number on the wall; a route to the ground-floor lobby because the studio has no lift; a hypoglycaemia kit (glucose tablets, a sugary drink) and the rule that a conscious, cooperative person is given 15 g of fast carbohydrate and rechecked in 15 minutes; and a written escalation line to HR and to the family contact in the consent form. Review the register monthly and report every event, including near-misses.